Zionist forces arrest two Palestinian minors

Israeli plainclothes officers have detained and interrogated a six-year-old Palestinian boy and his 12-year-old brother in the occupied East al-Quds (Jerusalem).

Ma’an news agency reported on Wednesday that the undercover operatives stopped their patrol car near the children in Wadi al-Joz neighborhood on April 28, at around 7:30 p.m. local time (1630 GMT) and arrested the two minors.

An Israeli police spokesperson, who did not immediately return Ma’an’s request for information on the incident, was quoted by Israeli daily Haaretz as saying that the children were detained for alleged rock throwing.

According to the Haaretz report, the six-year-old was interrogated for roughly eight hours, and not released until Wednesday, 3:30 a.m local time (0030 GMT).

In 2014, Palestinian children spent an average of 15 days in solitary confinement following their arrest, children’s rights group Defense for Children International - Palestine reported.

Moreover, research by the group demonstrated that over 75 percent of the detained Palestinian children often arrive at Israeli interrogation centers blindfolded, bound and physically abused.

Although minors under 12 years of age are not allowed to be arrested or detained under Israeli law, they are not immune to being made prisoners for allegations of throwing rocks at Israeli forces.

In November 2015, Israeli leadership passed a bill, under which an individual may be jailed for up to 20 years if convicted of stone throwing. It is argued that the move is designed to target Palestinian youth in the midst of intensifying violence in Jerusalem at the time.

A Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) report shows that Israel has detained over 10,000 Palestinian children below the age of 15 since 2000. In 2014 alone, 1,266 minors were detained in occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank.